The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-12-26
THE MORNING NEWS: MONDAY. DECEMBER rs, 1887.

| in this country was Dec. @, 1885, at " asn-
| ington, Pa. IN the Lemoyne furnace.
The principal argument tor cremation Is
the HYGIENE one. After death the body be-
/ gins to decompose, and in this process pols-
Onous substances are evolved whlch con-
taminate the soil. water and air. Unuer
! ordinary circumstances this decomposition
| is not completed for upwards OF twenty
vars, and as about l,0O0,0O0 persons cue
| every year in this country, one can estimate
| that, at the present time, some SO,oO,UW
hodies are in various stages OF decoa-
position.
Evidence of the contamination OF the air
| is shown by the unpleasant doors III me
! vicinity of graveyards The water whlcu
flows into wells near cemeteries has often
caused much disease and epidemlcs, OF
which numerous instances were cited by the
lecturer. That the soil is contaminated IS
also shown bv epidenics having frequently
broken out where graveyards have been
dug over, which not infrequentiy occurs
with the rapid growth of American ciues;
Disease germs are buried with the oouy,
and when the soil is disturbed they are set
| free to work their evil. Numerous sich ~
stances were also mentioned. For all TINS,
! cremation offers certain protecnon, tne
body being in an hour or two converted
into its harmless elements, and all germs OF
disease annihlated.
Another argument was on the score OF
economy. In the large cities the cemeteries
must be so far from the centre that the cost
of funeral becomes great burden upon
the poor, and is constantly increasing.s The
cost of cremation can be made very inslgnl-
ticant, in Italy it being less than dollar,
while in this country it has only been about
$40, but could be made very much cheaper.
Arguments have also been urged IN favor
Of cremation that it would prevent all pos
sibility Of grave dissertation and oil posi-
bihty of the horrors OF burial alive whica,
however, DR.. Howe said was of very infIe-
quent occurrence A description of the
cremation fErnace and the process was then
given, after which. the objections which
have been raised against cremation were re-
viewed
One Of the principal objections has been
raised on religious ground, because 1t Is
heather custom But burial is no less
heather Gus ON, while in several instances,
cremation was practced by the Jews at
the direct command OF jehovah The Earl
of Shaftesbury we'll asked i. the reply to
the objection that it would fare badly at
resurrection with those cremated, how 1t
would be with the holy martyrs who were
burned alive
An biecton has been raised that the
! gases from a crematory would be great
nuisance in the vicinity, but all the later
| furnaces nave Deen 50 dTTdlRcu IudJ tutoe
gases arising from the body are completely
consumed, so that none of them come to the
airs An objection has also been offered
that the destruction of the body would de
stroy all evidence of foul play, whereas the
necessary precaution which would be taken
would be more apt TO discover possible suspi-
cious deaths; and, Furthermore, these OBJ
| jections apply equally well to embalming,
which can at once destroy ali evidence of
| poiso ing. as has been repeatedly shown in
the courts.
1t is the aesthetic side of the question
which has really caused the greatest preju-
| dice against cremation, and yet the truth is
| that one can see the tomb and shut out
! from sight all that is unpleasant in the
| burial but it nevertheless exists. Fire has
always been considered the. great purifier,
! and there is nothing unpleasant in the
| thought of the body of loved one, an hour
in the embrace of this great purifier and
| then reduced to handful of white ashes
better lar than moldering away in the cold
| earth.
The lecturer then gave a description of
the services at an ideal crematory, and
| closed by saying: Legislation should make
compul DRY the cremation of all bodies dead
from cholera yellow fever, smallpox, scar
| let fever, diphtheria, consumption, and all
similar Diseases And furthermore, it is the
| duty of all who see the necessity of crema-
ton to use every endeavor to overcome the
| prejudice at present so prevalent against
the only sanitary method of disposing of the
bodies of our dead